Kids
by spamandbryce
Summary: Grief clings to the gang a week after the events of Starcourt. Desperate for something to smile about, Mike plans a late celebration of Independence Day. Read multiple perspectives from the Stranger Things kids as they navigate through heartbreak and the pains of growing up. (Season Three spoilers)


Kids

A _Stranger Things_ story  
by spamandbryce

"Lucas. Lucas, do you copy?"

A crackle, then a response. "Lucas here. What is it, Mike?"

Mike smiled, and when he did, he realized it'd been a while since his last. There wasn't much to smile about following the events of Starcourt.

Hopper was gone.

El, who all year had been increasingly talkative (at least when her lips were free from Mike's) was now nearly speechless in grief.

Max, whose feelings for Billy epitomized complicated family relationships, was barely herself as she took to skating alone at night with her hoodie drawn over her head—even in the muggy summer heat.

Even Will, whose experience with the Mind Flayer this time around had been much more "gentle" by comparison, was shut up in his house or stuck to Joyce who had resumed her duties at Melvald's General. But it felt to Mike like Will was avoiding him, and after the destruction of Castle Byers, Mike couldn't blame Will if he was.

"I think we need to have a barbecue," Mike said into his radio. "Lucas?"

"A barbecue? Mike…Why?"

"To celebrate the 4th of July, dude."

"You mean the 4th of July that was a week ago?"

"Yes, exactly!"

After a long pause, Lucas' voice came through the static sounding tired and sad. "Why, Mike? Nobody's in the mood for a barbecue, dude."

"_Dude_, that's exactly why we need to have one."

Another long pause, then Lucas sighed. "What do we need to do?"

Mike smiled again. It felt nice. "Do you have any fireworks left over?"

Convincing the rest of the gang was easy for the most part; all Mike had to do for Dustin was say, "Please, Dusty-bun?" and he said he'd get Steve and Robin to come. Mike called Max, who said "I'm in" almost before Mike had finished telling her about the barbecue. Apparently she was ready for something other than lonely nights with nothing but the rumble of her skateboard over the rough gravel of her street. The challenge came down to getting Will and El on board. They would require a face-to-face conversation, Mike knew.

Good thing they were living together now.

The afternoon sun fell on Mike's shoulders as he pedaled his bike out of his garage and up his driveway. It had been nearly three years since Will first disappeared into the Upside Down, but days like this made Mike feel like it had happened much longer ago. And sometimes, there was a tiny part of Mike's mind that questioned if it even happened at all. How could the cold, goosebump-raising darkness of the Upside Down exist when the sun was full-on summer mode right now, shining through the deep green of the leaves and speckling onto Mike's face from above?

It just felt too unreal.

Feeling a sudden impulse, Mike turned off of Mirkwood and into the shade of the forest.

* * *

Will heard Mike coming moments before he appeared through the trees. This gave him enough time to stuff the picture—or what was left of it—into his back pocket. When he turned, he saw Mike pushing his bike over a bunch of branches.

"Hey," Mike said. "Thought you might be here. What are you doing?"

Will shrugged. "I don't know." And he didn't. Not really. He'd come out to the forest because he kept feeling a bitter cold ache in his chest. But standing here, over the ruins of Castle Byers, only made that ache heavier—so much so that Will felt he might collapse on the forest floor from its weight.

Mike came over, stood by Will for a second, then sat down cross-legged on the ground. Confused, Will joined him, and the two stared at the sticks and planks of two-by-fours that he'd used to construct his forest escape. How many hours had Will spent here reading the _Lord of the Rings_, planning a new D&D campaign, or drawing himself as Will the Wise? Even if he wanted to, he couldn't have kept track; time didn't exist in Castle Byers. Will always felt that once inside, he'd entered a different universe, a happy version of the Upside Down. A universe where hope abounded and dreams leapt to life and the arm of reality couldn't reach to grasp at him with cruel fingers.

But he was wrong. Will shook his head, trying to hold the flood of tears that threatened to spill over and drown him in misery. Reality _could _reach him, and now it was squeezing the life out of him. Stupid, stupid, stupid. He was _so_ stu—

"I was stupid, you know," Mike said suddenly. Will continued to stare into the dark soil; Mike might see the tears sitting on the edge of his eyes, ready to make the jump. "I was stupid the other day. You know, when I said that thing about us not being kids anymore." Then Mike stood up, dusted off the seat of his pants and went over to the dilapidated entrance. "Come on," he said, "We can fix this up in no time."

Will didn't know what to feel as he got to his feet and went over to Mike, so the two ended up working in silence until Mike spoke again some minutes later. "We're having a barbecue. I already asked my parents, and everyone is already in. Well, everybody except you and El. But it'll be great—my dad's cooking hot dogs and burgers and Lucas is bringing fireworks. We can finally celebrate 4th of July like we were supposed to."

Will finally made eye contact with Mike as the two bent down and lifted one of Castle Byers' walls. At the same time, Will felt the walls inside his chest, the cold walls that had been squeezing his heart until it felt like bursting, fall away. He smiled. "That sounds great." And it really, really did.

* * *

El had been trying to get back to her halfway happy, because ever since Hop had gone, she'd been all-the-way sad. What she would give to have an argument with dad again! An argument to have just one more Eggo when she'd already had half a box; to stay up late and watch Miami Vice with him; to close the door just one more inch whenever Mike was over.

Sometimes Hop would compromise, like he had taught El during their first Halloween together. C-O-M-promise. That's where she learned the term "halfway happy." But grief was no Hop. It wasn't letting her feel anything else.

Grief didn't compromise.

"El?"

El looked up from her mattress at the foot of Will's bed. Through a crack in the door, she could see Mike. He walked in and gave a sad smile.

"Are you okay?" He asked.

El nodded, because that's what Joyce did whenever people asked if _she_ was okay. Joyce would say she's fine, even when she wasn't. Even when El had seen her crying almost as much as El herself.

"Well, I know you're not," Mike said, then quickly added, "but that's okay! It's okay to be sad sometimes."

Mike moved over to her and sat down on the mattress. El found herself laying her head on his lap, and once she felt his fingers run through her hair, the tears came. She cried until her eyes were dry and her stomach was sore from the grief wracking through her body.

Then, something splashed on her cheek.

"Oh, sorry," Mike said, and El turned to look up at him.

"You…you cry?" El asked, looking into Mike's glistening brown eyes.

Mike nodded. "I'm crying because you're crying. And because I miss him, too."

El felt something push at her heart, and she listened to the urge to wrap her arms around Mike. She didn't know how long they sat there, but it felt like a long time.

"We're having a barbecue," Mike said.

"Bar-bee-kyoo? What is that?"

Mike sat up quickly, and when El turned back around to see him, he had happy all over his face. "A barbecue is great! We cook burgers and hot dogs and—"

"You cook…dogs?"

Mike laughed. "No, not those types of dogs. These dogs are delicious and the most American thing ever. You _have_ to try one."

El didn't know what kind of dogs would be delicious, but she nodded. "Can we bar-bee-kyoo Eggos?"

Mike laughed again. "No, but we can have some for dessert. I'll tell my mom to buy lots of 'em!"

El smiled, then said, "Can Joyce come? She's sad, too."

"Of course! My mom is going to call her later, and all the other parents. We can finally celebrate Independence Day!"

* * *

"Do you remember when you asked me how many children I'm friends with?" Steve asked Robin. "Well, there they all are," he said, gesturing at the group of people scattered over the Wheeler's property.

Robin rolled her eyes, but smiled. "You should open a daycare, dingus. Or start adopting everyone."

"You _would_ make a pretty good mom," Dustin said from the back seat.

Steve shrugged. "Scoop Troop, let's roll." The trio hopped out of Steve's car, and as they walked down the driveway, they caught the smokey, savory whiff of barbecue coming from the grill Mr. Wheeler was manning. The tables spread across the pavement were decked in red, white, and blue, while matching streamers clung to the edges of the Wheeler's garage. Steve wondered if they hadn't taken down their Fourth decorations, or if they put them up just for this late celebration.

Either way, Steve appreciated it. The late afternoon sun hung in the sky, painting the scene with an amber sheen. After spending so much time underground with the Commies, it was great to feel the American summer again. If he let himself, Steve would worry about the road ahead; he was unemployed all over again after the destruction at Starcourt. But he shook the thought away—these were just like the good old days when he was still in high school, and the endless possibility of being a kid during summer vacation lay before him. And what better to make him feel like a kid again than…actual kids?

Over by the end table, where a tub of ice cream sat, was Erica. Geez, didn't she ever get tired of eating ice cream? She gave a smile that was more sass than friendliness—as only Erica could do—and Steve smiled back.

As Steve stood in line for the food, Nancy sidled up to him. "Hey," she said, looking up at him with a coy twinkle in her round blue eyes. Steve felt something kick at the walls of his stomach when he looked down at her, and he didn't know exactly what it was. He didn't have much time to think of it either, before Nancy said, "So are you guys dating?"

Steve froze, then looked in the garage where Robin was digging through a cooler of ice for a Coke. "What? No—no, we're not. We're just friends. It isn't like that." And even though it was the truth, Steve felt heat blooming underneath his cheeks.

Nancy smiled. "You guys look cute together," she said. Had she even heard what Steve just said? "Thanks for coming, Steve. Make sure you get one of my dad's burgers. He calls it the Wheeler Whopper." With a pat on the arm, Nancy headed off, leaving Steve clearing his throat and hoping that what he felt inside wasn't visible on his face.

* * *

From where Max sat, she could see the sun setting directly between the massive legs of the transmission tower a couple miles away from where the Wheeler's house stood. She watched as it steeped itself under the line of the horizon, and gazed at the colors that splashed upward into the sky. It was like God was dunking the golden orb into a massive cup of orange and pink tea. She looked higher and saw the colors fade to a velvety purple, where the brightest of stars had already started to glitter. It reminded her of the sunsets in California.

Max missed Billy. That was something she never thought she'd feel, but it was true. After Starcourt, El told Max the vision she'd seen: Billy's memories of his life in California. Of his life with his mom. Of the joy on his face when he was telling her about the seven foot wave he'd just caught.

She'd spent so much time hating Billy. She hated his stupid face and how he spent so much time doing his stupid hair and hated how much he loved his stupid car. Despite how Billy bullied her, bullied her friends, and bullied Lucas—despite all of that—Max still missed him.

And she hated that most of all.

Suddenly Max felt something move against her fingers, and she looked down to see Lucas sliding his hand into hers. "Hey, are you okay?" he asked.

Max did her best to smile, but it was useless; Lucas already knew. "It's just…Billy," she admitted.

Lucas gave a nod, and then, "I know what will make you feel better. Hey, Mike, you ready?"

All the parents had either left or were inside helping clean up, which gave the kids free rein to climb on top of the Wheeler's garage at Mike's leading. When they had all taken a seat against the slanted shingles, Max said, "So, what are we all doing up here?"

In answer, Lucas pulled off his backpack, which was bursting at the seams. "Here," he said. "I think we have just enough for everybody."

Max held out her hand to take the roman candle. One by one, Lucas passed the little wands off till each of the kids had one, and Will followed after him, giving everyone a match.

"Will and I tested this out earlier," Lucas explained, taking a match and striking it against the shingles on the roof. The match sparked to life, and the orange glow splashed against Lucas' face before he blew the match out. "Is everyone ready?"

"Okay," Mike said. "We'll count down from eleven. El?"

El gave a nod. "Eleven," she said.

"Ten," Mike said.

"Nine," Lucas said.

"Eight," Dustin said.

"Seven," Max said.

"Six," Will said.

"Five," Nancy said.

"Four," Jonathan said.

"Three," Robin said.

"Two," Steve said.

Erica shook her head. "Y'all are such cheesy nerds."

Lucas groaned. "Erica, just do it."

Erica stuck out her tongue to him, then brandished her match like the others and yelled, "One!"

In that moment the air was filled with hissing sounds and the smell of smoke. For a split second, Max thought her candle might be a dud after she lit its wick and nothing happened.

But then, _FWOOSH_. A ball of light leapt out of the end of her candle, streaking against the darkness like in a flash of purple. Then everyone else's candle erupted, sending balls of color like cannonballs into the ocean of the night.

Max pushed her arm higher as her candle continued to shoot off. _FWOOSH. FWOOSH. FWOOSH. _When she turned her head, she saw the others' faces—lit up by the light and lit up by joy—and she felt that same joy in her belly, rising slowly up into her chest, then throat, running over her skin and leaving goosebumps behind. Then she had no choice but to scream with delight.

"WHOOOO!"

* * *

Will started laughing once Max screamed, and soon everybody was whooping and hollering. Dustin said something about wishing Suzie could be there, so someone burst into the first lines of _The Neverending Story_ theme song.

_TURN AROUND…LOOK AT WHAT YOU SEE_

Then everyone—even Erica—was belting along until the fireworks weren't the only things filling the night with noise.

Tremors of laughter shook through Will as he whipped his roman candle like a magic wand. He felt like a sorcerer, shooting spells off at the command of his voice. _FWOOSH._

He felt like Will the Wise.

But the candles burned out eventually, so the group returned to sitting on the shingles. Will looked up at the tendrils of smoke running across the sky, weaving and winding like tentacles.

It reminded him of something he didn't want to think about right now.

Mike took a seat next to him and smiled. Suddenly, Will felt the need to tell him.

"Mike," Will said in a low voice. "I heard my mom on the phone the other day. I…I think we might be leaving. Leaving Hawkins."

Will watched as sadness wiped over Mike's face like a heavy hand, pushing down on his eyebrows and pulling the corners of his mouth into a shocked frown. But he didn't say anything.

For a while, the two sat in a bubble of silence while the others around them filled the warm night air with cheerful chatter. Then Will felt Mike's arm around his shoulder.

"Well, I guess it's the perfect time to give you this," he said, handing Will a thick piece of paper folded in two. "Yours fell out of your pocket when we were at Castle Byers earlier. Good thing my mom had another copy."

Will opened it up, his eyes fell on the picture of him, Mike, Dustin, and Lucas dressed as the Ghostbusters for Halloween last year. "Who you gonna call?" Will whispered, doing his best to keep the emotions he felt at bay.

"Us," Mike answered. "You're gonna call us. Me and El and Lucas and Dustin and Max. You can call all the time. And you can always come back and visit whenever you want. It'll be okay."

Will smiled, because he knew Mike was right. It would be okay.

Mike stood up. "Okay, my butt hurts. Also, we're teaching the girls how to play D&D. Everything's already set up downstairs. You ready to go, Dungeon Master?"

* * *

Mike waited as everybody climbed through the window that led from the garage roof to his bedroom. He remembered it being a lot easier when they were all Erica's size. Why did that seem like only yesterday?

Ever since his argument with Will about growing up, Mike became hyper aware of everything around him changing. He never saw Nancy once she started working. Holly wasn't sitting at her high chair at the dining table anymore. He, Lucas, and Dustin all had girlfriends and they were all in high school.

The news about the Byers moving away from Hawkins was a low blow when he was already KO'd. The party would never be the same.

Mike excused himself to the bathroom while the others continued to make their way downstairs. After he finished, Mike found himself staring at himself in the mirror over the sink. He knew things had to change—that was life. But did they really have to change so fast?

Halfway down the basement steps, Mike froze. The epic instrumental music that he and the boys always played for campaigns blared from the boombox and cascaded over the walls of the basement. The older kids were on the couch, sitting around a board game, but at the table, all of Mike's friends sat and stared at a cloaked figure standing above them.

Will the Wise stood on a crate, draped in his purple garments and armed with his sorcerer's staff. As he announced the campaign, Mike looked down at the group and realized this is what his mom must have seen whenever she decided to check on them in the basement.

This was the birthplace of so many adventures. Here, they could sit for hours, not moving an inch yet traveling thousands of miles. They could talk about everything and do nothing and still have the most fun in the world. The group laughed at something Will said, and Mike watched as smiles jumped from face to face, and he felt the joy move through the room like it was electricity.

Things had changed. But some things were still the same. A lot of things were ending, but Mike felt the exhilaration of a new adventure beginning. A week ago this group was together after Starcourt lamenting all that they lost. But now they were together relearning how to smile and laugh and be kids all over again. Because they still were. The party was still intact. Eventually they'd have to grow up, but under the lingering smoke of fireworks in the sky, with bellies full of hot dogs, snuggled up in the coziness of the Wheeler's basement—today, right now, they are kids.

* * *

_Author's notes_

The finale of season three left me reeling, and I doubt I was alone. I needed some sort of buffer to deal, and that's where a lot of the ideas for this story originated; this is what I'd do if I were one of the show's writers and Netflix had given one more episode.

Watching the kids (Will, specifically) have to deal with the pain of leaving childhood touched a very tender part of my heart. We all have to face it: growing up sucks. But at least for now, I wanted to let the kids be kids, and I felt like I could join them in that as I wrote. It was fun.

Also, this is the first fanfic I've ever written-I literally signed up for this site like two days ago. Let me know what you enjoyed, what you didn't enjoy so much, and what you might enjoy from me in the future.

Thanks for reading!  
spamandbryce


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